Boston College Athletics
Smith Picked On Second Day of MLB Draft
June 07, 2011 | Baseball
June 7, 2011
CHESTNUT HILL, Mass. - Senior INF/C/RHP Garret Smith was drafted by the Tampa Bay Rays in the 20th round (630th overall) on the second day of the 2011 MLB First-Year Player Draft on Tuesday.
One of the best all-around players in the ACC this season, Smith started at three different positions in the field and won the closer role out of the bullpen. He started 25 games at first base, 16 behind the plate and five at third.
The Rays drafted Smith as a shortstop where he started 83 games as a freshman and sophomore. The senior captain approached the coaching staff after the 2009 season about switching to catcher to fill the hole left by Tony Sanchez, who was drafted fourth overall by the Pittsburgh Pirates following that year.
Smith batted .267 with a team-leading 17 doubles and 17 RBIs this year. He currently ranks 14th in the ACC in two-baggers. Smith was also second on the team with 48 hits and third with 65 total bases. He recorded 15 multi-hit games and had a pair of nine-game hitting streaks.
Despite playing the three different positions - including playing more than one in most games - Smith made just four errors for a .988 fielding percentage.
Smith was a career .268 hitter with 43 extra base hits and 90 RBIs in 181 career games. He started 178 of those contests.
On the mound, Smith is a hard-throwing righty that can touch the mid-90s with his fastball. He led the team and is currently eighth in the ACC with six saves. He sported a 2.87 ERA in 17 appearances and 15.2 innings of work. Smith allowed seven runs - five earned - on 13 hits. He struck out 14 batters and walked nine.
